UT and N.C. State improving safety of organics

North Carolina State University and The University of Tennessee are making strides to improve the safety of organic produce by sharing a federal grant.

According to UT Associate Professor Qixin Zhong, the goal of the project is to look for safe and effective ways to reduce foodborne ilnesses. The project will focus on the more common causes of illness including E. coli and salmonella contamination.

Funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture will provide nearly $2 million to support this four-year program.

Both U.T. and NC State researches hope that they can use naturally occurring substances to fight the pathogens using the water that the produce is washed in.